Junior Matthew Plunket shoots for a goal. CCHS water polo has taken down every opponent that stands in their way of a district title.
BY KAYLA LOKEINSKY
The Cooper City High School girls and boy’s water polo teams dominated the Western Wildcats in their second district game of the season on Thursday, February 24. The girls won with a final score of 28-6 and the boys with a score of 19-4. These wins automatically put both teams into the district tournament.
The CCHS girl’s water polo team immediately took the lead at the start of the game, with a 7-2 lead by the end of the first quarter. Although Western was the first place district finalist last year, their loss to CCHS in the semifinals put them at a disadvantage for Thursday’s game. The Cowboys were beating the Wildcats by over 20 points by the end of the third period. With a final score of 28-6, the Cowboy captains, junior Serena Benner and sophomore Meris Drew, scored 10 goals each. Other standout players were junior Kayla Lokeinsky with 3 goals, including one full court shot, and junior Maria Pitt with 2 goals.
The CCHS boy’s water polo team also quickly took the lead in their game against the Wildcats, and held it throughout the entire game. They ended with a final score of 19-4 with multiple goals made by senior Matthew Bunting, senior Andrew Ellis, junior Matthew Plunket, and freshman Brandon Bogumil.
Then on March 3rd and March 4th, the CCHS girl’s water polo team competed in the annual Saint Andrews’ Water Polo Tournament. An invitation only tournament, it consisted of some of the top teams in South Florida, including the state winner, Ransom Everglades High School, and the state runner up, Winterpark High School. The Cowboys placed ninth out of fourteen, a huge improvement from their second-to-last place finish last year.
The girls lost to Winterpark High School on March 3rd, putting them into the losers bracket. But they came back in the end, beating Seminole Ridge and Cypress Bay High School for the ninth place finish, first in their bracket. Although the tournament does not count towards their record, the both the girls and boys’ water polo teams have a positive record that they plan to maintain through the rest of the season.
